“I may walk slowly, but I never walk backwards.”
– Abraham Lincoln
Happy New Year! Every January, my mind drifts to Lincoln’s quote above, because this is the time when people set new goals for their lives: I am going to lose weight, I am going to quit smoking, I am going to learn the piano, I am going to retire, that sort of thing.
One resolution to consider: I am going to be more active in the investment management of my company 401(k) account, or at least try.
But we all know that, while goals are easy to set, they are not always easy to do. Life is constantly throwing obstacles in our way. Distractions and setbacks abound. Sometimes the road to our goals curves, sometimes the climb gets too steep, and sometimes we get stuck in the mud.
When this happens to me – or, I should add, when it happens to my 401(k) advice clients – I always try to remember Lincoln’s words. There was a man who knew something about setbacks and obstacles. When he was 23, he tried his hand at business by opening a general store. It failed. Next, he ran his first political campaign for the Illinois General Assembly. He lost the election. A decade later, he campaigned for a seat in Congress – but could not even get nominated. A decade after that, he ran for the Senate for the first time to no success.
In 1858, he ran one of the most famous political campaigns in history, most notable for his seven debates against rival Stephen Douglas. But he still lost.
Of course, you know what happened next.
You see, amid all those setbacks, Lincoln also scored many victories. He did get elected to the Illinois Assembly, he opened a successful law practice, served one term in the House of Representatives. Sometimes, those victories were temporary. Sometimes, they were less grand than he hoped. Sometimes, they were mere steppingstones to what he wanted.
The older I get, the more I realize how similar the road to our investment management goals is to Lincoln’s, especially a company 401(k) account. There are wrong turns and false starts, dead ends and cul-de-sacs, pitfalls and potholes. Our progress may get interrupted or delayed. But every time we take that next step, every time we measure progress, not by time elapsed but by distance run, we are doing what Lincoln did: Walking slowly, but never walking backwards.
Your 401(k) account balance took a big hit in 2022. It likely recovered a little bit in 2023. Now is the time to begin to think about your 2024 401(k) investment management decisions. You don’t want to “walk backwards” again during the preservation and growth of your most important retirement account.
So, this year, as you pursue new goals and embark on new journeys, I encourage you to remember Lincoln’s words. Your goals may be physical or financial, vocational or spiritual. You will achieve them. All you must do is take the next step. That way, when the next twelve months are up and people ask how your year was, you can answer with a single word: “Lincolnesque.”
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.